Buttermilk Biscuits

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Cube the butter and place it in the freezer for 15 minutes. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a food processor. Pulse a few times. Add the butter cubes and pulse a few more times to break the butter into pieces about the size of little green peas, and no larger.

Add the buttermilk to the flour mixture (in the food processor or in a separate bowl) and combine to form a sticky dough. Working quickly, move the dough to a floured board and press into a rectangle about an inch thick. Fold the dough in thirds like an envelope and press the dough back into a 1-inch rectangle. Handle the dough as little as possible to keep the butter very cold.

When the dough is flat, cut into squares or rectangles using a pastry cutter or a very sharp knife. Place them on a lightly greased baking sheet—the biscuits should be touching for soft sides, or 1 inch apart for crispy edges. Brush the tops of the biscuits with a little bit of buttermilk and sprinkle the tops with salt, pepper, sugar, or a combination. Your choice!

Bake the biscuits for 12 minutes or until golden and puffy. Serve warm or let cool. Enjoy!

Notes:
1. The key to very fluffy biscuits is to work the dough as little as possible—not much kneading at all, and work quickly to keep the butter very cold. So, keep the buttermilk in the fridge until the last minute and measure everything else before getting the butter into the flour. Then, go to town!
2. Adapted from southern.food.com recipe for Southern Buttermilk Biscuits.